As the head book nerd and editor of From Left to Write, a virtual book club, I read two to three books a week — so I can share the best ones with you. With summer finally here, the stack of beach reads on my desk keeps growing higher. Nothing says summer like curling up with a juicy book on the beach or alongside the pool while your kids frolic or take swim lessons.
Want to spice up your reading list? Here are my top picks:
7 Entertaining Beach Reads
You won't be able to put down these books, so just toss them right into your beach bag.
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The Opposite of Maybe by Maddie Dawson
Rosie has been Jonathan’s girlfriend for so long, she can’t imagine life any other way. Until he is offered a job to open a tea cup museum across the country and (finally) proposes. This sudden life-changing decision unravels their relationship and Rosie finds herself accidentally pregnant at 44 and suddenly moving back in with her grandmother. Maddie Dawson’s words make each colorful character alive in your imagination (and heart) which makes turning the last page of The Opposite of Maybe bittersweet.
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After I’m Gone by Laura Lippman
Laura Lippman is known for her Tess Monaghan mysteries, but this stand- alone suspense thriller is a perfect introduction to her work. During the 1970s, a well-known mobster goes on the lam, leaving his mistress, wife, and three daughters behind. After I’m Gone unravels how these women cope with living without the major figure in their lives, especially after his mistress turns up dead 10 years after his disappearance. Was one of the other women responsible for the death?
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One Hundred Names by Cecelia Ahern
Travel to Ireland in One Hundred Names by Cecilia Ahern. Rocked by scandal, journalist and reporter Kitty Logan’s career is quickly disappearing. On her death bed, Kitty’s mentor entreats her with a list of 100 names and encourages her to write the best story she’s ever written. Can Kitty find the thread that connects those names before her career becomes unsalvageable?
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The Divorce Papers by Susan Rieger
Told entirely in letters, notes, and legal papers, The Divorce Papers by Susan Rieger gives readers a bird’s eye view of a nasty divorce. In the middle is criminal law associate Sophie Diehl, who has been forced to take on her first ever divorce case. Divorce is not usually a funny occasion, but this well-crafted book is so delightful, you’ll find yourself rooting for Sophie and her client.
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The Lost Sisterhood by Anne Fortier
We’ve always been fascinated by the myth of Amazon women warriors, but did they really exist? Anne Fortier offers a literary what-if of Amazonian history in her novel The Lost Sisterhood. Part mystery, part adventure, the novel will keep you on your toes as Oxford lecturer Diana Morgan chases clues to prove that Amazons really did exist.
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What Nora Knew by Linda Yellin
Fans of Nora Ephron will love this fun, a laugh out loud novel by Linda Yellin. In What Nora Knew, bitter divorcee Molly Hallberg has been given the toughest assignment of her career: write an article about romance and true love in the style of Nora Ephron. She’s too busy interviewing strangers about love that her cynicism might make her miss the love of her life.
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Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
If you haven’t read this fast-paced roller coaster about a husband accused of killing his (famous) wife, make sure you read it (and then go see the movie). Trust me when I say, the Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn will have you yelling, WTF? every other chapter. It’s definitely worth the wild ride.
